A1 Test Only Smog Station

DO NOT, repeat, DO NOT take your Hybrid to get a smog check at A-​1
located at 1790-​B Ygnacio Valley Road. Today I took my Prius there using a $ 17.95 coupon I got from a mailer, I ended up having to pay $ 66.20 !
They added $ 20 for the Hybrid (which was written on the coupon and was fine with me). But then the man who did the smog check charged me another $ 20 extra saying that’s for using a «special machine». He was rude too. It was not a pleasant experience. I would never go back again.
(I am giving it one star because it’s at lease done with now).

Unprofessional, rip off. Please don’t give this guy business. Brought in my coupon like all the smog places have and he said cause the new machines he had to charge 20 dollars more, but the old machine is 30 dollars more He was unable to tell be what machine and car the coupon was advertising.

The wait was quite long and the price was extremely high. Even with his joke of a coupon.

Agree with others who said this place rips you off. I went to get a smog check, but forgot my 50% off coupon at home. When I told the attendant this, he told me that they didn’t offer a 50% off coupon, and that he could only give me $ 10 off the listed price of $ 109. He also told me that other smog centers charge comparable rates, and that the only exceptions were for certain kinds of cars. All lies. In my Valpak coupon mailer that I received in the mail today, there were two coupons for under $ 25. I highly recommend going to Smog Repair & Lube at 1225 Parkside Drive in Walnut Creek. The coupon is for $ 19.95, but if you don’t have the coupon, you can ask for the online discount which is $ 28 (that’s what I did). Took less than an hour, and I ate at the Shanghai Gourmet Chinese restaurant in the same strip mall while I waited (a great place for Chinese food btw).

This was the worst car experience I have ever had. 1^st he switches prices on you, wanting to leave he keeps my paper work, say he has started test and will charge me. He proceeds to put my car up on his ramp with front wheels on ramp incline and put it in ‘Park’ with out setting the parking brake. The SUV rolls back on transmission park, he has no concern or knowledge that
this can brake transmission. Please save your self agony and DO NOT GO HERE.
THIS GUY WILL RIP YOU OFF !!! or EVEN BRAKE YOUR CAR !!!
HE IS A DISGRACE TO THE AUTOMOTIVE BUSINESS AND SHOULD BE REMOVED FROM
BUSINESS !!!

I brought in a coupon and instead of honoring the price, he told me that price only applied to certain cars and all these crazy exceptions and rules. Then he gave me a price that was pretty much triple the advertised price. I told him I was gonna leave and then he started negotiating his price lower. I eventually got the smog check done but it was the worst experience. And as other reviewers mentioned, he does charge $ 3 to use a credit card. I was shocked at the guy’s hostility and rudeness… horrible customer service experience.

Don’t do biz with this shop. The owner is very dishonest person, and just try to rip you off. Wish I can give it a ZERO star.

I could not believe the poor service I received here! I walked up to ask what the price was, as I had a coupon for 50% off. He said he needed to see my car to tell me the price, and that I needed to back it up a ramp to get the price. I move my car, but don’t back it up because it feels fishy. I demand to know the price before I sign anything, and it was too high. I said I wanted to leave, so he asked me if I had a competitor coupon. I showed him one for $ 25.95, and he said he would not honor it because I had traction control. What does that have to do with anything? Once again, I demanded my paperwork back because this whole thing felt so shady. He refused to give it back, and said he would take the coupon price. I had to snatch my dmv paperwork from him, and he proceeded to try and keep me there. Finally, I got in my car and kept saying «leave me alone, I am not interested!» and he replied, «I don’t want you as a customer! «The whole thing was crazy! I then went to Unilocal,found Walnut Creek Smog, and had a wonderful experience. Do not go to A-​1, they will scam and harass you!

Ugh! This is what happens when you wait until the day before your registration is due. I should have shopped around but I’m a procrastinator and got stuck going to this place where I spent 3 times more than I should have. $ 118 for a smog check. Damn. That’s more than my registration. Do yourself a favor and just head to one of the spots downtown. I’m so mad at myself for not just walking away.

If I could give negative stars I would. This guy completely ripped my wife off, using some of the techniques already described by previous reviewers. I should have told her not to go here, based on an experience I had with this guy a couple years ago, but I didn’t think of it and she wandered in. Well now, I feel obligated to warn other people.
I brought in my diesel truck and this guy would not honor his coupon and then quoted me an outrageous price to smog the truck. When I asked him why, he told me that it was because a diesel requires special equipment and is extra-​hard on his equipment. Well, there is no test for a diesel, other than a visual, and I knew that. When I called him on his completely fabricated lie, he went agro and yelled at me to go somewhere else. I did and got it done for ¹⁄₃ of what he was trying to charge me. BAR should pull this guy’s license. Pennysaver and Shell gas should be ashamed for assisting him in trying to rip people off. Overcharging is one thing, but making up up policies/​laws that don’t actually exist should not be tolerated.

Wish I had read Unilocal before I went! First he quoted me $ 119, when we called SmogNDash (bc I had a coupon for them and they said they would do a star certified smog check on a 2000 Chrysler town and Country for $ 45.95 out the door) he conceded! But still decided to say that was the *cash only price and charged me $ 3 to run my card!
If money/​time is no object go here at your own risk.
PS the car did not pass the smog test… And so the final price was $ 37.70+$ 3 and to re-​test at his place was going to be the same amt. Needless to say, I’m going to get my car re-​tested elsewhere tomorrow.

I wish I Unilocaled this place before I came here. I don’t want to replay this bad experience but to sum it up, AVOID THIS PLACE!!! The attendant was very rude, sly, and unprofessional. Never thought I could have a horrible experience just getting a smog check. I’m amazed a place like this stays in business. Based on the Unilocal reviews, I guess many others have had a bad experience. I’ve learned my lesson again, to try to Unilocal before I enter a business.

I had a different experience, I bring in the coupon and he explain to me all the additional charges that had to be added on top of coupon. I think it is the same for all other places… at the end I got out of the place with the same price he quoted me.

This guy gets no stars from me. I stopped in and asked him if he would honor a coupon from another local smog service and he agreed. My husband and daughter brought the car in later that same day with the coupon attached to the form they filled out for him and he refused to honor it. He charged us $ 128.20!!! for a smog test. He also refused to honor his own coupon that was also attached to the paperwork they filled out for him. He said it was because they didn’t «show» the coupon to him. It wasn’t good enough to attach it to the paperwork they handed to him. He was a complete jerk. I have never given anyone a negative review but I will NEVER do business with A-​1 Smog or the Shell Station. I will not pull in to that station ever again.
He finally agreed to honor his own coupon, charging us $ 68.20. Had he refunded us the additional $ 28.00 I wouldn’t be writing this… It wasn’t worth it to him to be fair with me. He lost at least one customer while we were hashing out the refund.
This guy does bad business and if I were you I’d take my business elsewhere!
Oh how I wish I had looked at this site first… I filed a report with the Department of Consumer Affairs Bureau of Automotive Repairs and I suggest everyone do this. I will tell everyone I know not to use this creep.

Took my car here for a smog check. I had their coupon, but had to haggle for a fair price. This Shell gas station is having its tanks replaced, but the smog business continues during reconstruction. There is dust everywhere and my car was covered with dust after the smog check. The guy who did the smog check wore gloves that were apparently covered with grease and I had grease all over my car, including the seats and steering wheel. I had to go home afterwards and fully wash and detail my car. Anyway, it was a poor experience and I will look elsewhere in two years. I hate having these guys mess up my car.

I would give zero stars. The price starts high and then he comes down. Not sure why my wife did not walk at that point. We failed us due to their test technique on emissions., according to the mechanic we took it took it to for the failure. These guys will not retest for free and are kind of rude when told of the mechanics opinion. Like others have said, they are rude and don’t deserve the business.
Took the car to Green Star in Concord as they will retest if it fails, their prices are fair and they got great reviews on Unilocal.We passed there immediately and I will go to A-​1 for a full refund and will dispute on my credit card when they turn me down (which we all know they will). Green Star was super nice and had great prices and will retest for free, if needed.
Keep away from these guys. Perhaps they will go out of business and a reputable company takes over. I too got a Unilocal account just to post about these guys.
Forget A1, they should disappear from my experience and those of others.

I created a Unilocal account just so I could write a review for how terrible this place is. Have been to a business that was so bad it motivated me to write a negative review. Wish I would have read the reviews before making the trip. Every bad thing that has been said about this place is 100% true. DO NOT go here.
Tried to charge me $ 120 to get my car smogged When I question why, he gave me a bunch of bs reasons for the ridiculously high price. After haggling for 5 mins I got him to agree to do it for $ 64.99 (half price).
BUT… he was unable to complete the smog test and had to abort it (I didn’t understand his reasoning why) and proceeded to tell me I would have to pay the $ 64.99 anyway, and come back and pay for a retest.
I had heard enough. Demanded my car back and told him I wasn’t going to give him a dime. After some resistance he reluctantly gave me my keys and let me leave.
Worst experience I have ever had getting a smog test.

No words in my vocabulary can describe the atrocious behavior of the attendant at this facility.
If I could I would give it ZERO stars

I went here unfortunately without checking Unilocal first. Last time that will happen!
There was an advertisement in the PennySaver for $ 24.99 with a $ 35 off coupon. I incorrectly assumed that the $ 35 off coupon would get me down to the advertised price of $ 24.99. Yeah, uh NO.
The guy pulled my car in and starts the smog, and then hands me the paperwork with a $ 109 +cert + some strange misc fee.
He then comes out and says I need new front tires. He tells me he is aborting the test and I need to come back and have a re-​test after I get new tires. I ask him, why didn’t he tell me that before he started?
I ask him if he’s going to charge me another $ 109. And he says yes.
I ask him about the ad for $ 24.99 from PennySaver. (My bad for not asking to see the estimate before he started the work.) He first defensively asks, where did you see that? I then pull out my phone and show him the add, and he says that applies only to non-​test only cars. He tells me if I bring the car back within 5 days he’ll only charge me an additional $ 29.99 +cert +strange misc fee.
I tell him that I think I’ll call the BAR. He then reluctantly asks me what he can do…
He finally agrees that when I return with my new tires, he’ll only charge me the cert fee.
I get in my car to drive off and I notice that the ABS light and the brake lights are lit on the console. (they were not that way when I went in for the smog). He tells me that it’s part of the test and that they’ll be shut off when I return.
The ad says that they stay open until 4:30 on Saturday. So I rush to go get new tires. I return at 3:35 and patiently wait for him to finish up with another customer. He sees me, and closes his roll down door, saying that the machine has been shut down for the night and I’ll need to come back on Monday, even though it’s now only 3:45.
So after reading about the scam with the lights on Unilocal,I decided that I really didn’t want to go back here even if was going to only charge me the cert fee for my «2^nd test». I told him what I learned online, and that I didn’t trust him with my car, and I would like him to refund the money he charged me on Saturday since he didn’t actually do any work. That’s when he flew off the handle and started screaming at me. Asking me, don’t you know how to read? You signed the estimate, it says pass, fail or abort. I said yes, and you made the test abort because you said that I needed new tires. He told me he spent 15 – 20 minutes on my car, and did not make it abort. I said try 5 minutes, and you’re telling me that’s worth $ 75… His ranting continued, I figured I wouldn’t get my money back and decided to chance letting him test the car.
I reluctantly let him test my car and it passed. So far no warning lights are on. However, he told me to make sure that I listed my full address on the work order — which makes me more than a little freaked out. And then decided that he only accepted cash after taking a credit card on Saturday.
STAY FAR FAR AWAY FROM THIS PLACE.

After seeing the negative reviews, I called against my better judgement to see if I could get a quote over the phone and could not get a straight answer. He said that it depends on the car, engine, mileage, transmission, etc, etc. So I decided to drive it down. As soon as I pulled up, he recognized me and said that it would be $ 80 without asking any more question. This was the first tip off that he was not being honest (he would not answer over the phone, but once I was there he quoted a price right away).
I pulled out a competitor’s ad because he said that he would match any other offers. He then began to argue with me about how the other offer was not for SUVs (even though it said light trucks) and was not for test-​only (even though it stated right on the ad that it was). In the end, I left frustrated and disappointed that I had even driven down to the shop. If you are reading this on Unilocal,see the negative reviews and save yourself the hassle of even driving in; there are other smog stations close by.